Today’s music landscape is one defined by abundance and immediacy. In a chronically-online world, everything is overground immediately. Scenes have to work really hard to stay underground and even then, some eagle-eyed A+R or marketing person is going to see the buzz and try to bottle its essence for wider consumption. Underground never stays ‘unde

... See more

Joshua Citarella argues that Gen Z and Millennials used irony as a defense mechanism against late capitalism’s perceived betrayals, from a soaring cost of living to the increasingly precarious nature of labor. “Irony as culture became: ‘The band I like will sell out, so I’ll buy-in early.’ Irony as politics became: ‘Movements get corrupted, so I’ll... See more